


Moments with Betsy

by Palecat



Category: Summer Camp Island (Cartoon)
Genre: Bathing/Washing, Cuddling & Snuggling, Cute, F/F, Fluff, Friendship/Love, Light-Hearted, Platonic Cuddling, Romance, Slice of Life, Teen Crush, Werewolves
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-16
Updated: 2019-02-16
Packaged: 2019-10-29 16:21:19
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Underage
Chapters: 3
Words: 4,221
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17811338
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Palecat/pseuds/Palecat
Summary: Hedgehog spends alone time with Betsy during the full moons. Seeing the different sides of each other and dealing with their issues deepens their friendship. Wholesome moments together start to build their friendship into something better.





	1. A Moment

There's not much like it. The sweet smell of the summer air. The wind whistling in my ears. My paws bounding across the grass, weaving me through trees as easily as water over a riverbed. Nobody there to tell me what to do, nothing to stop me, no rules. I wasn't bound by even the laws of the world I came from. Physics, math... specks behind me when I ran like this. This sensation was forever. Eternal freedom, all for myself.

Then sometimes... she was there. With me. I could feel her presence, greater than mine. Her fur, denser than mine as she sprinted alongside me. I let it distract me, tripping on a branch and sending me head over heels. She brakes, and jumps in front of me, stopping me from tumbling. Even without her ever so recognizable face and hair, I could recognise her. Betsy, on her knees beside me, having stopped me from rolling all the way down the hill. Her canid eyes regarded mine, as I regarded her. Her soft hands gripped my shirt, pulling me upright, while she looked me over. Eternal care taken in everything she did. How warm, gentle she was. It was enough to make my tail flick to the right, then left again.

It only took a moment for me to regain my thoughts, and I looked to the side with a bit of embarassment. I'd been easily distracted just by her running alongside me. What a silly thing for a werewolf to do. Wolves didn't trip for stupid things like that naturally. Wordlessly, she reached out to me. The movement caught my eye, directing my attention back to her. She was smiling. Before I could ask she had put her hand on my shoulder. The thought to question this came to me, but it was silenced as she leaned in and pushed her forehead to mine.

I could smell her. All the witches had their own, very distinct scent. Alice always reeked of perfume, baby powder, hand sanitizer and kept herself clean, unnaturally so. Susie always smelled like sweat, damp earth and cinnamon. She probably only bathed about once per day, sometimes skipping days. Betsy was... different. Her body radiated this energy I couldn't understand. Nothing came close besides maybe Oscar. But unlike him, hers came from something different. We hadn't known one another since childhood. We hadn't nearly perished together between the seconds of the clock. We hadn't slept side by side all our time at camp. There was still a magnetism to her, though. An aura that I felt. It mingled with the smell of warm bread, her special smell. Wildflowers lining a jar of honey. A freshly made lunch. All of it filled my senses... partnered with the odd energy surrounding her. I couldn't help but shut my eyes.

As one, we took deep breaths. I could hear her slow, steady heartbeat alongside my fluttering, unsure rhythm. Nothing could replace this. In just this moment, I felt what I usually felt between me and Oscar. A connection on a level deeper than any words could express. Resting against me while crickets chirped. Fireflies blinked to one another. The smell of her filling my mind while her soft hand rubbed my shoulder. I didn't feel bad about tripping anymore... I felt glad she was there.

We stayed like that until at last the moon dipped low beneath the treeline. She stood up, a smile crossing her face. Her finger pressed to her lips as a reminder to keep this secret from the other witches. I yearned for her to come back, watching her leave. I'd have to talk to her about this, sometime later. Until then, I had to get back to camp. Confused emotions danced in my heart. What had happened...?


	2. An Evening

For this night under the full moon I had asked for a special favor. No running through the wilderness this time. No attending the festival with the other werewolves. This time it'd actually just be us. Me and Betsy. I couldn't think of any other way to do this properly. We couldn't let Susie have any idea. Oscar probably didn't want to stay out all night. Besides that, I didn't know how he would feel about this. Because I didn't even know how to feel about it. I took the time to sneak away after Susie called lights-out, so I could already be at Betsy's home when I transformed. All I had to do was push down my urges and enter the cabin. I was barefoot as always on these nights. It saved me the trouble of having to get a new pair of shoes every month.Taking a deep breath, I walked inside, making sure to shut and lock the door behind me.

The first thing I noticed was that she had everything moved around. The furniture was arranged against the walls with a large space in the middle to wander around in. A smooth rock sat in the center of the room, flattened on the top and looking like a nice place to lounge.Betsy was laying peacefully atop it, reading one of her favorite books. A skylight let in plenty of moonlight on us, while the normal windows were sealed shut and covered completely. As my eyes took her in, I felt that same sensation as before. The aura she had around her was inescapable. I couldn't deny it. It rolled off her like waves, and everything there smelled of her. I felt like I wanted to be there with her. To be at her side all night, read with her and maybe sleep beside her, like I had with Oscar all these years. Except with her it was different. With Oscar it always had just seemed like the thing to do, but with Betsy... it was a connection I couldn't describe. Something pulled me towards her.

As my fingers pushed the lock into place I saw her ears flick in my direction. Her expression shifted from its neutral state to a warm smile. The look of Betsy's eyes whenever they met mine was enough make me shiver, and my tail swished eagerly. I didn't know why. I felt like a plant being gifted with sunlight. She made a motion for me to come over, something I was all too happy to oblige to. It only took me a few seconds to scramble on top of the rock. Once I was up there I got an idea for the real scope of the perch. About a full five foot radius, and with plenty of room for both of us, I didn't need to get too close. That wasn't what I wanted though. I craved proximity.

For once in my life I didn't listen to my inhibition, and let my wolf come out. I sidled up to Betsy, resting right beside her. I felt her soft fur on mine. My heart fluttered in my chest. How could I ever live without this? The thought came to me that one day, I'd have to be without Betsy. Once I went back home I'd never see the camp again, probably. I barely got to stay for this summer. I looked at my hands, unable to think of what to say. I felt her looking at me. I knew she was curious about what was on my mind. It hurt though, thinking about it.

"Betsy... I have something I want to say." I whispered, knowing that she'd hear. "For the last full moon, and this one too, I've thought about us. As friends. As best friends."

She flicked her ears forwards, her attention taken fully by my words. She knew Oscar was my best friend in every way. So for me to use that term for her was extremely important. Knowing this, I continued.

"Since I became a werewolf, since I got this gift from the werewolf queen, you've been there for me. Every time I needed advice or was panicking about something new. Even before, you were always on my side. You stood up for me, Oscar and the other campers. You stand up to Susie when we can't do anything. Most of all, you taught me to look at following my instincts as a good thing. I wanted to say... thank you."

Betsy looked away a moment. She waved a paw to dismiss it as nothing too big. She was humble like that.

"Hedgehog I was just doing what's right, you don't have to thank me for all these things." She spoke softly, a smile on her face.

I knew she would do that of course. My instincts told me the moment I finished talking that she'd want to try and downplay things. That was her nature. I didn't feel like that was what I wanted though. Like maybe she didn't understand the gravity of the effect it had on me. The next time I spoke my voice cracked a bit. I tried my best to make sure she really knew how I felt. Sitting up, I rested my hand on her fur covered shoulder. I watched her expression change. It went from humble and satisfied, to alert, caring and empathetic.

"This isn't coming out right... I want you to know that I care about you. A lot. As much as Oscar. I thought just now about how things would be without you, and I'm actually really scared. Nobody understands this part of me like you do. Oscar can sort of try, but he hasn't walked in our shoes. He doesn't know what you smell like, he can't ever know how the moonlight feels when we lay under it. I can't explain how badly I want to stay with you..."

I broke off, feeling myself starting to break up a bit inside. The look on Betsy's face had changed again. She looked me in the eyes, watching my tears well up. It wasn't possible for us to stay together. The only girl to really understand how liberating this form was, couldn't stick around for me. At least I thought so. There was no way I could say goodbye to Oscar. To my family. The tears in my eyes spilled over as I listened to her speak. I felt her arms wrap around me, pulling me into her embrace. She let my head rest on her shoulder as she comforted me. My heart leapt up into my throat. One of her soft hands began to pet my ears, letting me know that she understood. I started crying, unable to contain it.

"Hedgehog, I think that what we share together is special. And there's something I wanted to tell you too." She whispered to me, one paw rubbing my back. "We're both tied to the moon. I was there for you pretty soon after you were introduced to this new life of yours. That's irreplacable. I wanted to tell you that I thought of us as even more than best friends. We're closer than that. I never had anyone there when I became a werewolf. When I was 'born' I guess you could say. So I want to help you through all the problems I had back then."

I couldn't help but let a small smile cross my face. That was without a doubt the nicest thing that anyone besides Oscar had said to me. She wanted to help take all my problems away... to hold me there. Still, I reached up to wipe my eyes. That didn't change the fact that I'd be leaving. Maybe not soon, but I would be. That was all that really mattered to me. The idea of leaving it all behind hurt. Adding in everything she'd just said made that idea even worse to me. I didn't talk though. This moment was precious. Pushed against her with her arms around me. This was everything I wanted. Because someday soon I wouldn't be here. Once summer ended I couldn't cry in her arms. There would be no laying against each other reading books until the sun rises. The feeling of the mooonlight on my skin with her beside me. Her voice when we howled at the moon. The soft fur I knew so well, and the smell of her would fade into my memories. All of it made me cry even more... burying my face against her chest.

Feeling me starting to sob, Betsy wrapped her hand around my head. I heard her hushing me, petting my ears, telling me it'd all be okay. Her lips pushed to my forehead in a comforting kiss, and she pulled me as close as she could, trying to comfort me. It only made the idea of seperating from her worse... but I loved her for it. Making this moment so special to me. After a few minutes of this, I felt her lean in. She began whispering to me as quetly as she could, her voice gentle and caring.

"Shhh... I can't stand to see you cry, Hedgehog. If you really want, you can stay here on the island. Forever."

My eyes widened. What did she mean I could stay forever? I absolutely needed to return home. What would my parents think if I simply vanished? Even worse, that meant that I'd have to say goodbye to Oscar. Could I do that? I had to admit just in the moment... it sounded so tempting. To shrug off that responsibility. She saw the shock on my face and hugged me a bit tighter.

"You don't have to decide right now Hedgehog. I just wanted to tell you. Because me and you are both werewolves, now. Under the moon, both of us are gonna live a long, long time. Even if leaving what you know behind hurts, if you stay... you'll never have to say goodbye again. I can make sure you never have to cry. Never, ever again."

I couldn't bring myself to say anything. She brought a hand up to my face, brushing my tears away. She rested her forehead against mine, and stayed like that. For a while we sat there in each other's arms. I let the smell of her drown out everything else, while my mind wrestled with the idea of saying goodbye to what I knew. My family, Oscar, the world outside the island. All of it gone. What would it be replaced with though? A long... no, an eternal life with the person who would come to understand me just as well as Oscar, and already understood a part of me better than he ever could when it came to being a werewolf. It'd be an eternity of the island and all its mysteries. An eternity of living out a life a lot like Betsy's. What would I be giving up long term? Boring business work my father wanted me to do, mostly. Dull adult life.

Once I totally calmed down, and thought about it rationally, the more Betsy's offer tempted me. The ones that stayed in my life would mostly be the inhabitants of the island, whom seemed to mostly be timeless. The witches, the other werewolves, the monsters, all of them would be there for me still. I didn't have many friends in school. I was always busy studying. One thing kept coming back to me, though. Oscar. Would he understand? Who would go to his birthday parties? Who would stand up for him? Would he be okay on his own? Had I done enough to let him get along without me? That was what ate at me. The idea that I'd be giving up my friendship and all my support for him, so that I didn't have to experience the pain of letting go of Betsy. Who was the only person who had any hope of fully understanding me.

Hours passed. I didn't move at all. The only thing I heard was our hearts beating as one. The occassional brushing of our fur against each other. The adjusting of her arms around me, whenever it was needed. We spent most of the night like that together. At last, I spoke.

"I'll talk to Oscar. I want to stay."

As the sun started rising, Betsy leaned in and pushed her cheek against mine. The smile she wore said it all. I'd made her happier than I'd ever seen her. Knowing I'd eased the aching in her heart, I felt special. I knew that the feelings I had weren't one sided. She was willing to go really far for me. To help me adjust to a new life... a new beginning. She was probably going to get in trouble with the other witches, too. All for me. We'd be best friends... no, even better than best friends, forever. As the daylight flooded in, we returned to normal, our fur and hair in a disheveled mess like it always was at the end of the night. I felt her hand close around mine, as exhaustion flooded us. Suddenly the stone we were sitting on wasn't comfortable, in our normal forms. She guided me to the couch, and together we laid down to dream about our new life together.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Comments greatly appreciated.


	3. A Bath

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter contains non-explicit nudity.

A soft tapping of a tape into a a cassette deck brought me to my senses again. The sun shone brightly through the skylight. The smell of my best friend surrounded me. The soft couch felt good against my cheek. I was tempted to fall back asleep. She probably didn't need me right at this exact moment. Then, a soft tune began playing. A piano melody I personally had played countless times. Clair de Lune came over the stereo to bring me to my senses. I opened one eye to see Betsy kneeling beside the couch. Her cheek was placed on the soft fabric beneath us, staring into my eyes adoringly. I couldn't help but feel special whenever she looked at me like that. As if I was the center of her whole world. There was nothing like it. It was the irreplacable emotion that came with being cherished by someone. She reached out and brushed some of my fur back out of my face.

"Rise and shine..." She whispered softly.

I couldn't help but smile. I sat up while she remained with her head resting against the cushion of the couch. A moment passed between us of just soaking in the atmosphere. I reached out a hand and brushed it through her messy hair. It was always so soft. Even with it being on the unwashed side, it never became tangled or bunched. Running my fingers through it was just as lovely a sensation as always. As I heard the stereo switch tracks to Reverie, she stood up. She took my hand and placed it on her cheek. I couldn't imagine how I'd ever be able to live without this. Could I ever go back to waking up with nobody there to look into my eyes? Without anyone to reach out to?

Betsy didn't give me too much time to think about that. She was good at not letting me get tangled up in my own thoughts. She kept me moving. The feeling of her soft cheek brought me back to reality. Sharing an intimate moment with my camp counsellor wasn't something I had even dreamed about when I had first come to camp. Now sharing moments like this with her was the most relaxing thing I could think of. It was strange how close we'd become. I welcomed it though. It was a sort of friend I hadn't had before. Not in Oscar or anyone else. This was special, between me and her. She wrapped her hands around mine, pulling me up from the couch to stand. I was a bit on the shaky side but I held myself up. Once I was steady she turned and led me towards the bathroom.

This was actually new to me. We'd never discussed anything like this before. It had me a touch apprehensive as she led me onto the tile floor. It took me a second to muster words to say. By then she was already a step ahead of me though. Sometimes I wondered if I was predictable whenever she anticipated my actions. She reached up with a finger and rested it on her mouth to hush any lingering protests I had. Taking her wand out, she summoned two towels for us. A moment passed of her turning on the tap to a large claw-footed tub. The sound of hot water rushing over the porcelain filled the entire room. Steam rose and fogged up the mirror across from the tub. As I settled into the moment again I found peace with this. I needed to stop overthinking things. This was a just a bath between the two of us.

My special best friend tapped her clothes with her wand. It took a moment for them to unbutton and fall away from her body. It looked like they relaxed and slid from her body like liquid. I couldn't help but look. She was pretty clearly older than me. A teenager obviously. Thin but not too much so. Her build reminded me a bit of my own, if I was physically a few years older. I took my eyes off of her and watched as she stepped carefully into the tub. For a long moment I watched her slowly ease herself down into the hot water.

I figured I should to the same. It was a slight chore getting all my clothes off, but once I had it was simple to get into the tub. The actual bath was enormous, easily fitting us both. She sat nearest the end while I got the spot closest to the spigot. It took a while but soon the water was just below our shoulders. Betsy flicked her finger to turn it off, before leaning back to rest against the inclined part of the bathtub. I did likewise by turning sideways and sinking downwards, my knees rising up from the water. I shut my eyes for a long moment and started thinking. About how to tell Oscar. How to tell Susie. What they'd say about me staying on the island.

"Y'know Hedgehog... you spend a lot of time thinking about everything... and I think you need to learn to relax more."

My eyes wandered over to Betsy. She was looking at me with a concerned expression on her face. I averted my eyes. So I was that predictable. She knew I was worrying. It was a lot to think over. It was a ton of stress for me. I didn't like not knowing how things would go. Especially with Susie or Alice. But I did know that Oscar would be supportive. Sad about having to leave me one day, sure. He would never stop supporting me though. I knew he'd probably cry. I would cry. The main issue long-term was that Susie would be a very hard sell. It made my stomach lurch thinking about standing in front of the pink-haired witch and telling her I'd be staying. I could imagine it going horribly. The one thing saving me was Betsy. With a deep breath, I eased the tension in my neck and shoulders. She was right. I shouldn't be thinking about these things. Especially right after I woke up.

I felt the water shift around me. Pulling my eyes back towards my friend, I found her leaning in close. She set a hand on my shoulder. It took me a moment to realize what she was doing. She gently pulled me towards her, taking me in her embrace. The nicest witch placed my back on her chest and guided me towards the end of the tub. Her touch coaxed me to move with her, until she placed her own shoulders against the resting incline towards the back of the bath. I felt her place a kiss on the top of my head, while she began massaging my shoulders. I was having a hard time thinking about anything except her. Smooth hands on the tension I held in my upper body. Soon her fingers delicately squeezed at the base of my neck to diffuse the pressure I held there as well. Within a few moments I felt a long sigh escape me.

This was what I needed. Time alone gave me too much fuel to burn. Too much distance to run all at once. I needed someone to pace me. Limit myself. Betsy pacified the anxious beast within. All that built up tension could flow. The instruments in my head had a beat to play to. Structure to the discordant thoughts that plagued me. She was all that and more. I felt her hand reach up, caressing my cheek. I felt myself resting against it almost without thinking. Her smooth skin felt great through the fur on my back. The water ate away at whatever leftover aches I had from transforming into a werewolf last night. All was right with the world. Betsy was there with me to make everything okay. To fend off the anxiety tomorrow brought. I had a little island of tranquility when I was in her presence. One I would never let go of.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Comments are greatly appreciated.

**Author's Note:**

> Comments greatly appreciated.


End file.
